


May I Have This Dance?

by afteriwake



Series: Where Speech Ends [16]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-29
Updated: 2015-06-29
Packaged: 2018-04-06 21:23:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4237143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/pseuds/afteriwake
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While waiting in Seoul to find out what the next step in their journey will be while they chase Moriarty, Sherlock tries to find out if there is anything he can do to make things easier on Molly. When she mentions she misses their dates they attempt to have one in their hotel room, dancing to one of the songs Molly had discovered while they were in South Korea, and he realizes this particular one seems to be quite adept at showing how he feels about his relationship with Molly when she asks him to translate it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	May I Have This Dance?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [horrorfangirl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/horrorfangirl/gifts).



> So I must admit, I had actually not heard this song when I was searching for K-Pop songs to include in this mix (because it's a genre of music I adore like nobody's business). But since I already adored f(x) I knew I was going to love it and really, “Paper Heart (종이 심장)” is such a beautiful song. Now, I did not do the translation myself. I got the translated lyrics from [this website](http://colorcodedlyrics.com/2014/07/f-x-paper-heart-jongi-simjang) so any errors are not mine.

**Ever take dance lessons?**

He had thought once she got the full import of what it would mean to chase Moriarty around the globe, always seeming to be a step or two behind, she would get upset and resent the fact she had to stay by his side. If she left she would be in danger, and at times he was worried that she would get angry that her whole life had been turned into a wild goose chase and realize that it was all his fault. But so far she seemed to be handling it well enough. After Scotland they'd spent a month crisscrossing America, then two weeks in Canada and one in Brazil, and then one and a half weeks in Australia and another week in New Zealand. Now they were in Korea, waiting in Seoul, and had been there for five days. It looked like they might need to pack up and leave again soon, but he wouldn't be sure until the morning.

They hadn't ventured far away from the hotel where they were staying. It was a shame, because the city seemed fascinating. Molly had been especially taken with the music she heard, the catchy pop songs and soulful ballads that filled the radio and television, and she'd used the laptop and credit card Mycroft had given them to order quite a bit of it off of the internet once she had begun associating names of artists with specific songs. He would only half listen to the songs she would play out loud, his mind translating a random phrase here and there. She seemed to prefer the female singers to the male ones, he had noticed, and he realized a few minutes ago that she kept playing one song with more frequency. He moved away from the window to her spot on the bed. “I take it you like this song,” he said, listening for a moment.

She nodded. “It's quite pretty, even if I can understand very little of what they're saying.”

“What is it called?” he asked.

“'Paper Heart.' It's by a band called f(x). They have some very good songs, actually. I have their entire discography now.”

He looked down at her. “I'm sorry you've been more or less cooped up in this room.”

“Well, it's the best way to keep me safe, right?” she asked, looking up at him. “Then I don't mind. I've been enjoying some of the television programs and the music, and I have books on my Kindle that Mycroft has paid for.”

“Mycroft is going to look at the charges and wonder what on earth we could need Korean music for,” he said with a small smile. “I think he's going to regret letting us have that card.”

“No, he told me to keep myself as occupied as possible so I had no reason to come back home,” she said, shaking her head. “He's worried for my safety as well.”

He nodded. That was both his and his brother's primary concern, it seemed. John, Mary and Lestrade were more than capable of taking care of themselves, but Molly was another matter, and because he cared so much, because he loved her more than anything, Sherlock made keeping Molly safe his priority, even over finding Moriarty. He didn't want to think about what his life would be like if she wasn't in it. But she deserved something to make the day better. “We should go somewhere, enjoy ourselves,” he said. “My contact won't be available until the morning.”

“We don't have to. I really don't mind being here,” she said before pausing. “Though...”

“Though what?” he asked.

“I do miss having dates,” she said. “But maybe we could have one here. We could get room service and ask them to send up candles, have a romantic dinner, maybe? And maybe we could dance to some of the songs I have?”

He raised an eyebrow. “What type of dancing?”

“Well, not ballet or jazz or step-dancing,” she said. “But dancing with me, like you would to a slow song. Just being close and swaying in time with the music.”

“We can do that now, if you'd like,” he said, offering her his hand. “Start this song over first.”

She nodded, shifting her position so she could get off the bed. Once she was standing up she turned back to her laptop, going to the music player and starting the song over. She turned to face him again and he put his hands on her waist while she slipped hers around his neck. “Can you tell me what they're saying in English?” she asked. He nodded and listened as the singing started and he and Molly began to sway to it.

 _Barami jangnaneul chil ttaemyeon_  
_Nareul kkok butjabajwoya hae_  
_Tto naraga beorilla_  
_Geureoke gugimyeon keunil na_  
_Nan mareopgo chakhae boyeodo_  
_Jajonsimi senikka_

_Sarange mak apa bon jeok_  
_Nugul jinjihage saenggakhan jeokdo_  
_Nan cheoeumira simgakhae_

It took him a moment, but thanks to his ability to recall anything he was able to translate it pretty quickly. Ignoring the chorus he began to tell Molly what had been sung. “The first woman says 'When the wind plays tricks, hold me close, I might fly away,' and then the second woman says 'If you crumple me like that, you'll be in trouble. I may be nice but I have a huge ego,” he said.

“Oh, that's so you,” Molly said with a chuckle, looking up at him with a warm smile on her face.

“I suppose,” he said, giving her a small grin. “The second verse also resonates with how I am. A third woman sings 'I've never been hurt because of love,” and the second woman picks up with 'I've never seriously thought of anyone before.' The third woman adds the last line, 'For the first time, I'm serious.”

“And this next part?” she asked.

He had missed the first verse after the chorus, and began paying closer attention. “I'll have to listen to it again to catch the first few lines, but the lyrics I managed to catch are 'I might break so make you words gentle and soft, okay? Oh bear it deep in mind, if you don't know everything beforehand I'll tell you.” he said. “And then it goes into the chorus, which starts with 'On the outside I look strong, but my heart is like paper' and then has 'You're too good to be true, I'm a little scared' after the English bit.”

She stopped swaying to the music and looked at him. “Are you?”

“Am I scared that this is too good to be true?” he asked quietly. She nodded. “No. If it was too good to be true you would have hurt me in some way or given up on me a long time ago. You haven't hurt me and you're still here, even though your life has been upended because of this. So since that's the case, I'm not afraid that this will be something that will end before its time and leave me shattered.”

“I'm glad,” she said softly before she leaned in and kissed him softly. He kissed her back, pulling her closer and relishing the feel of her. When they pulled apart to catch their breath the song was ending. “I suppose I should pick another song.”

“I rather like that one,” he said. “Put it on repeat.”

She smiled at him and pulled away with some reluctance. She went and stopped the new song, restarting the other one and fiddling with the controls. Then she came back over to him and stepped into his arms again, this time letting resting her cheek against him. At least for the moment all was right with his world, and that was a good thing. Whether it stayed that way or not he wasn't sure, but he would take moments like this as often as he could to hold onto and cherish in case the worst happened.


End file.
